So SMVE has the pricetag of a Premium. Wonder if the response to the game would have been different if they had called it a Premium and not a Vault Edition.

Did they with Whoa Nellie? There's you're answer.

Here's another way to look at the pricepoint: even if Stern would rerun SM as the original game, there's too many stuff on the playfield to sell at a Pro price. But offering the standard model at a Premium price would create an even bigger keyboardstorm than reskinning the game and giving it the comicbook look. Taking parts out to create a new Pro model would also create a storm, so why bother? Reskin it is. Premium price justified (in their book).

Basically what used to be the only model from 2000 to 2008 would now be called the LE / Premium model. Strip it down and you get the Pro version.

With all the discussion going on about the artwork I'm just wondering why Stern isn't offering 2 or 3 different art packages to choose from. That worked for Spooky with AMH. As there is already a deal with Marvel, how much more difficult would it be to do 1 or 2 additional versions? Sure it's a bit more work for the (already busy) Art Dept, but most of the dots can stay the same, music and voicecalls too. It gives the collectors something to choose from and may result in more games being sold.